Career and Education Opportunities for Nurse Clinicians in Denver, Colorado

Many educational and employment opportunities exist for nurse clinicians in the Denver, Colorado area. About 3,530 people are currently employed as nurse clinicians in Colorado. By 2016, this is expected to grow by 28% to about 4,530 people employed. This is better than the national trend for nurse clinicians, which sees this job pool growing by about 16.0% over the next eight years. In general, nurse clinicians plan, direct, or coordinate the daily patient care activities in a clinical practice.

A person working as a nurse clinician can expect to earn about $39 hourly or $82,210 yearly on average in Colorado and about $38 per hour or $80,240 annually on average in the U.S. as a whole. Incomes for nurse clinicians are not quite as good as in the overall category of Medical in Colorado, and not quite as good as the overall Medical category nationally. People working as nurse clinicians can fill a number of jobs, such as: community health clinical nurse specialist, clinical nurse, and public health clinical nurse specialist.

There are sixty-four schools of higher education in the Denver area, including one within twenty-five miles of Denver where you can get a degree to start your career as a nurse clinician. The most common level of education for nurse clinicians is a Master's degree. You can expect to spend about six years studying to be a nurse clinician if you already have a high school diploma, or just 2 years starting with a Bachelor's degree.

CAREER DESCRIPTION: Nurse Clinician

In general, nurse clinicians plan, direct, or coordinate the daily patient care activities in a clinical practice. They also ensure adherence to established clinical policies, protocols, and standards.

Nurse clinicians collaborate with other health care professionals and service providers to insure optimal patient care. They also direct or conduct educational programs or in-service training sessions on topics such as clinical procedures. Equally important, nurse clinicians have to ready reports to document patients' care efforts. They are often called upon to instruct nursing staff in areas such as the assessment, development, implementation and evaluation of disability or resources. They are expected to participate in clinical research projects such as by reviewing protocols, reviewing patient records and meeting with regulatory authorities. Finally, nurse clinicians furnish direct care by performing comprehensive health assessments, developing differential diagnoses, conducting specialized tests, or prescribing medications or treatments.

Every day, nurse clinicians are expected to be able to read and understand documents and reports. They need to evaluate problems as they arise. It is also important that they listen to and understand others in meetings.

Nurse clinicians sometimes are asked to perform discharge planning for patients. They also have to be able to make clinical recommendations to physicians, other health care providers or health care organizations And finally, they sometimes have to furnish specialized direct and indirect care to inpatients and outpatients within a designated specialty such as obstetrics or neonatal care.

Like many other jobs, nurse clinicians must have exceptional integrity and be reliable.

Similar jobs with educational opportunities in Denver include:

EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES: Nurse Clinician Training

University of Colorado Denver - Denver, CO

University of Colorado Denver, , Denver, CO 80217-3364. University of Colorado Denver is a large university located in Denver, Colorado. It is a public school with primarily 4-year or above programs. It has 17,510 students and an admission rate of 68%. University of Colorado Denver has a master's degree and a doctor's degree program in Nursing Administration which graduated 112 and ten students respectively in 2008.

CERTIFICATIONS

Medical Review Officer:
AAMRO certification is recognized as an objective standard of competency and expertise for Medical Review Officers.

Manager of Quality/Organizational Excellence:
The Certified Manager of Quality/Organizational Excellence is a professional who leads and champions process-improvement initiatives everywhere from small businesses to multinational corporations that can have regional or global focus in a variety of service and industrial settings.

Certified in Volunteer Administration:
In the constantly changing contemporary work environment, the standard of best practices in volunteer management must remain at the highest level of expertise possible.

National Professional Certification in Sales:
The Certification was designed to capture the core Sales duties for a broad range of entry-level through first-line supervisory positions across the sales and service industries.

Program Management Professional:
Project Management Institute's newest credential is specifically developed to acknowledge the qualifications of the professional who leads the coordinated management of multiple projects and ensures the ultimate success of a program.

LOCATION INFORMATION: Denver, Colorado

Denver, Colorado photo by David Shankbone

Denver is located in Denver County, Colorado. It has a population of over 598,707, which has grown by 7.9% over the last ten years. The cost of living index in Denver, 102, is near the national average. New single-family homes in Denver are priced at $223,800 on average, which is below the state average. In 2008, eight hundred thirty-seven new homes were constructed in Denver, down from 1,215 the previous year.

The top three industries for women in Denver are health care, educational services, and professional, scientific, and technical services. For men, it is construction, professional, scientific, and technical services, and accommodation and food services. The average travel time to work is about 25 minutes. More than 34.5% of Denver residents have a bachelor's degree, which is higher than the state average. The percentage of residents with a graduate degree, 12.4%, is higher than the state average.

The percentage of Denver residents that are affiliated with a religious congregation, 53.0%, is more than both the national and state average. The most prominent religious groups are the Catholic Church, the American Baptist Churches in the USA and the Episcopal Church.

Denver is home to the J F Kennedy Municipal Golf Course and the North Marston Filtration Plant as well as Cheesman Park and Bear Creek Park. Shopping malls in the area include Alameda Square Shopping Center, Boulevard Shopping Center and Brentwood Plaza Shopping Center. Visitors to Denver can choose from Embassy Suites Hotel Denver Downtown, Intown Suites Aurora and Denver Marriott City Center for temporary stays in the area.